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New Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R Gets Traction Control for 2013

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Officially debuting the 2013 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R in New York’s Times Square today, Kawasaki has unsurprisingly brought a stroked-out 636cc machine to a 599cc supersport battle. While the chassis of the new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R is the same, the motor has obviously been reworked, along with the bodywork. However, the big news from the reveal is the addition of Kawasaki’s three-mode KTRC traction control to the supersport-class motorcycle, once again proving that electronics are the new horsepower.

Other additions to the 2013 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R include Showa’s new SFF-BP front forks. Combining Showa’s Separate Function Fork (SFF) with its Big Piston (BP) technology, Kawasaki hopes the suspension units will provide the optimal balance between street and track riding. The new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R motor also gets further improved with the addition of a back-torque limiting slipper clutch.

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Bikes

Details Drop on the 2013 KTM 1190 Adventure R

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The very German folks at Motorrad have gotten a chance to swing a leg over the pre-production version of the upcoming 2013 KTM 1190 Adventure R. Avoiding a conversation about how motorcycle publications are starting to look more like the outsourced marketing departments of motorcycle OEMs, what is perhaps the second most interesting thing from the article are the details about the Austrian company’s newest offering to the adventure-touring crowd.

According to the completely unbiased Germanophone Michael Pfeiffer, the new KTM 1190 Adventure R borrows its lump from the current KTM 1190 RC8 R superbike, and is marked improvement over its predecessor: the KTM 990 Adventure R. Pfeiffer says power is roughly 150hp, while the 1190 Adventure R tips the scales at 230kg (507 lbs) when at the curb with a full 24 liters of fuel (that’s 6.3 gallons for us ‘Mericans). Fitted with a 21″ front wheel, the KTM 1190 Adventure R also features switchable ABS, traction control, and dual engine map settings for on-road and off-road use.

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Bikes

2012 Honda Crosstourer

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Honda teased us last year with the Honda Crosstourer Concept, but for the 2011 EICMA show, the Japanese manufacturer is making good on its promise to bring the GS-lookalike to market. Based off the VFR1200F, the 2012 Honda Crosstourer comes with traction control, combined anti-lock brakes (C-ABS), and of course an optional dual-clutch transmission. While the Crosstourer shares the VFR’s 1,237cc V4 motor, the adventure bike model puts out a significantly lower 127hp @ 7,750 rpm, while a gluttonous 93 lbs•ft torque @ 6,500 rpm remains on-tap.

Clearly a road-focused adventure-tourer model, the Honda Crosstourer may never have the off-road pedigree as the BMW R1200GS it is meant to emulate, but true to Honda fashion, the Crosstourer has plenty of technical prowess built into it. For instance, the idea of using DCT technology for an adventure bike should prove interesting, as it takes the process of having to manage the clutch/motor over unsteady terrain out of the picture.

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Bikes

2012 Ducati Superbike 848 EVO Corse Special Edition

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Confirming our earlier report on Ducati releasing a “Corse” version of the Superbike 848 EVO, the 2012 Ducati Superbike 848 EVO Corse Special Edition was unveiled today in Milan. The Corse-kitted Superbike 848 EVO comes with an Öhlins rear shock (same Showa front forks though), upgraded 330mm front brakes, Ducati traction control (DTC), and an electronic quick-shifter (DQS). There is also of course the very attractive Corse paint job, which the special edition derives its name from.

No word yet on pricing for the 2012 Ducati Superbike 848 EVO Corse Special Edition, though we’d expect a one to two thousand dollar premium for the bike, as Ducati is likely keen on unloading some Superbike 848 EVOs in 2012. Though, we couldn’t possibly imagine why that would be the case. More photos of the red, black, and white goodness after the jump.

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Bikes

2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale Redefines the Word ‘Superbike’

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I often get lambasted in the comments section for being pro-Ducati here on Asphalt & Rubber, and that’s fine by me, because I am. It’s hard not to like a company that has basically defined the modern aesthetic for motorcycles, or a company that continues to grow despite being in the worst recession since The Great Depression. It’s also not hard to love a company that continues to release, year-after-year, new compelling motorcycles, as is the case today with the 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale.

Teased ad nauseam, the Ducati 1199 Panigale shouldn’t disappoint the discerning sport bike rider with a strong appetite for Italian food, as the latest v-twin from Bologna sets many firsts for the superbike market segment. As we predicted last year, the Ducati 1199 Panigale drops 20lbs off the Superbike 1198’s design (22 lbs actually), while making an extra 20hp over its predecessor. Not only is the 1199 Panigale the lightest production superbike on the market, with its 361 lbs dry weight (414 lbs wet), it’s also one of the most powerful with its 195hp peak power figure, courtesy of the Superquadro motor.

Other firsts include a revolutionary monocoque frame, the first full-LED headlight on a motorcycle (another story we broke), the first electronically adjusted suspension on a sport bike, the first engine braking control system, as well as the first GPS-assisted data acquisition system for a production motorcycle (the DDA+ package is an optional equipment item for the Panigale). While traction control comes standard, ABS brakes will also be an optional item for the Ducati 1199 Panigale.

Available in April 2012, as we expected the new Ducati 1199 Panigale has gotten a price increase over the Superbike 1198. Accordingly the base model will cost $17,995, the “S” will cost $22,995, and “S” Tricolore will hit the wallet at $27,995 MSRP.

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Bikes

2012 MV Agusta Brutale 675 Breaks Cover

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After showing us the 2012 MV Agusta F3 675, the iconic Italian motorcycle company has also spilled the beans on the MV Agusta Brutale 675. The three-cylinder 675cc naked bike, is unsurprisingly and basically an F3 supersport without its fairings. With a peak power figure of 113hp @ 12,000 rpm and 52 lbs•ft of peak torque @ 10,600 rpm, the Brutale 675 tips the scales at 163kg dry (359 lbs), and like its fully-faired counterpart, the new Brutale should be a peaky, yet potent, stead for willing owners.

Featuring the same MVICS electronics package that was debuted on MV Agusta F3 675, the MV Agusta Brutale 675 will continue the “electronics are the new horspower” trend of the new decade, and with a €8,990 price tag should be equally alluring. The cheapest MV Agusta now on the market, we imagine Varese is hoping to sell a metric boat-load of the new baby Brutale. However, as we saw with the US pricing of the MV Agusta F3, how that sub-€9,000 price tag will translate to greenbacks remains to be seen.

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Bikes

MV Agusta F3 675 Details MVICS Electronics Package

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MV Agusta must be feeling antsy about the upcoming EICMA show in Milan, as the Italian company first teased its MV Agusta Brutale 675 in a video last week, and today it has released the final specifications of its upcoming 2012 MV Agusta F3 motorcycle.

While we’re sure the 126hp 675cc three-cylinder motor, with its 52 lbs•ft of torque, will please the discerning supersport purchaser, MV Agusta is betting that its MVICS (Motor & Vehicle Integrated Control System) electronics package is what is really going to get you excited about the Italian machine (did we mention it looks gorgeous too?). 

Clearly reading our thoughts that electronics are the new horsepower, the MV Agusta F3 675 is now the only supersport to boast ride-by-wire & traction control, and also comes along with optional wheelie and launch control vehicle dynamics.

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News

Video: Ben Spies & The 2012 Yamaha YZF-R1

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We’re not sure if Ben Spies drives a shaggin’ wagon when he goes to track days, or if he spaces out during the rider briefing with a lollipop firmly planted in his mouth, but trouncing the other riders with his “advanced” status sounds about par for the course for the GP racer. Helping Yamaha sell the 2012 Yamaha YZF-R1 and its “born from MotoGP” traction control system, Spies plays the star in another video from the Japanese manufacturer.

Riding his 50th WGP Anniversary R1 out to some unidentified track for a bit two-wheeled schooling for some other Yamaha riders, we’re not really so sure about the story involved with this video, but as far as motorcycle industry videos go, it is not the worst we’ve seen. The photography, on the other hand, is stunning. Photos and video after the jump.

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Bikes

2012 Yamaha YZF-R1 – Traction Control Cometh

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The 2012 Yamaha YZF-R1 has broken cover, and the biggest feature the lightly tweaked liter-class bike boasts is a new seven-level traction control system (for our brothers in arms across the pond, a six-level traction system is being used…consider that punishment for your European ways). Other material changes include a revised engine map for smoother power delivery in the lower and middle rpms, while the footrests, triple clamps, headlight marker lamps, front cowl, and exhaust guards & end caps have also been revamped for 2012. More after the jump.

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Racing

Lorenzo Cleared to Race after Free Practice Crash

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Jorge Lorenzo had a spectacle of a highside during the cooldown lap after MotoGP’s Free Practice 3, sending the Spanish rider into the air and his Yamaha YZR-M1 motorcycle tumbling after him. Stopping to do a practice start, the traction control on Lorenzo’s M1 was disabled, which is normal during such an event. Failing to re-engage the TC system after his start by downshifting (as would happen going into Turn 1 after a start), Lorenzo entered the next turn without his rider aids.

Cracking the throttle wide-open on the corner exit (as is the custom now with GP bikes), the Yamaha recieved full-power to the rear wheel, resulting in the accident. Hitting the ground hard, Lorenzo recieved further injury from his M1 also colliding with him, resulting in the Spaniard grabbing his knee and being slow to get up from the gravel trap. Helped off the track by corner workers, Lorenzo was already recovering from the incident by the time he got to the Clinca Mobile.

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Opinion/Editorial

Are Electronics the New Horsepower?

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The news of the 2011 Aprilia RSV4 R APRC got me thinking today about where the sport bike market is headed from a big picture perspective.

The sport bike market has been dominated the constant need to develop motorcycles with more power, less weight, and new performance enhancing technologies, and you’d be hard pressed to find a year where the bike with the most horsepower wasn’t the top-seller in this category (case in point: the complete sales domination of the BMW S1000RR during 2010).

For years the motorcycle manufacturers, especially the Japanese, have been painting themselves into a corner by constantly having to one-up each other with horsepower figures in order to sell motorcycles in this segment.

With bikes like the 2011 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R approaching the 200hp barrier, the question about “how much power is enough?” has been cropping up, and it certainly could be that we’re approaching the point in time where the relevancy of this metric is losing it’s power (pun moderately intended).

So what will be the new kingmaker for sport bikes? The electronics package.

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